On What Foundation is Africa Building its Science and Technology Base?: Africa\'s Participation in TIMSS-2003

In 2003, six African countries - Ghana Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco, Botswana and South Africa - participated in an international assessment programme in science and mathematics, called the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). The study examined the performance of eighth graders in mathematics and science as well as the contextual factors that could have influenced the performance. Analyses of the data indicated that in general the African countries performed poorly. Countries in the north of Africa performed significantly better than those in sub-Saharan Africa. Generally they all performed poorly on items that involved solving non routine problems and reasoning. Examination of the context for learning science and mathematics revealed several weaknesses in the curricula of the participating African countries. It indicated that majority of the students did not have the opportunity to learn a substantial proportion of the content assessed in the TIMSS even though these were part of their intended curricula. The least use of technology (i.e. calculators and computers) in the curricula was also reported by the African countries. Recommendations are made for African governments to pay attention to the teaching of science and mathematics in the primary and secondary schools. The results of the study suggest the need to carry out an indebt examination to identify the dimensions of the problem for information that would be helpful in policy decisions to address the issue across the continent.African Journal of Educational Studies in Mathematics and Sciences Vol. 3 2005: pp. 1-

Species Diversity and Relative Abundance of Fisheries Resources Found in Beach Seine along the Central Coast of Ghana

The diversity and relative species abundance of fisheries resources were studied from Winneba to Cape Coast on the central coast of Ghana during December 2007 to May 2009. Samples of organisms were collected at random from beach seine landings during the study period. The fishes were counted and identified to the family and species levels. Ecological indices such as Shannon-Wiener diversity index, equitability and Sørenson’s similarity index were used to analyse the data. Specimens from Winneba, Saltpond and Cape Coast comprise 56 species belonging to 30 families. Carangidae, Haemulidae, Clupeidae and Sciaenidae were some of the families, where key species occurred during the study. The relative abundance of key organisms in the beach seine landings include Chloroscombrus chrysurus (26.0%) in 2007, Brachydeuterus auritus (22.8%) in 2008, Ilisha africana (14.7%) in 2008, Sardinella aurita (13.1%) in 2009 and Selene dorsalis (11.2%) in 2007. The organisms that were in low relative abundance were Acanthurus monroviae, Penaeus notialis, Galeoides decadactylus and Trichiurus lepturus. Shannon-Wiener diversity index, estimated in the study, ranged from 2.54 to 2.83. Species equitability range was 0.67–0.77, and the Sørenson’s similarity estimated ranged was 0.66–0.69. The estimations of fish species diversity and equitability were higher (H’ = 2.83; J’ = 0.77) during the 2009 study in the central coast of Ghana. The similarity indicators in the various paired periods during the study showed considerable similarity in the organisms that were exploited by the beach seine in the area. The study explains the linkage between the diversity and relative species abundance of the coastal fisheries resources and offshore marine resources in Ghana, and the need to regulate beach seine operations in order not to over exploit the juvenile stocks

The fusion of modern and indigenous science and technology: how should it be done?

Several African intellectuals, especially educators, have realized the need for the overhauling of Africa's educational systems to enable these intellectuals address the needs of Africans. In this paper, we have reechoed the need for this overhauling process, and have argued for an integration of indigenous knowledge systems with the formal school curriculum. In this paper, the benefits of integrating community science and technology with school science and technology and the constraints to the integration have been outlined. It also reports on the attempt at integration by the Centre for School and Community Science and Technology Studies (SACOST), at the University of Education, Winneba in Ghana. SACOST is a centre of excellence established by the African Forum for Children's Literary in Science (AFCLIST), a non-governmental organization. The paper identifies the community as having four major operating areas (the school, indigenous, informal and formal), each of which constitutes a group with shared interests, values and modes of operation. The model proposed for the integration focuses on the school as the central component that should utilize all the existing knowledge in the community in the human resource development. African Journal of Educational Studies in Mathematics and Sciences Vol. 2(1) 2004: 49-5

Legal termination of pregnancy among teenagers and older women in Soweto, 1999-2001

Background. Legal termination of pregnancy (TOP) was introduced in South Africa in 1996. No data are available to relate the numbers of TOPs to the total number of pregnancies in specific health regions. The level of use of TOPs by women of different age groups is not known.Objective. To determine the proportion of pregnancies that end in TOP, with special reference to maternal age, and to measure trends in use from 1999 to 2001.Setting. Greater Soweto, Orange Farm and Lenasia, a densely populated urban health region served by Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital and comprehensive primary care reproductive health services.Methods. Two cross-sectional studies performed in 1999 and 2001, counting all pregnancies managed in state-run health services, including legal terminations, spontaneous miscarriages, ectopic pregnancies and deliveries. Results. There were 5412 pregnancies in the study period (9 weeks) in 1999, and 5316 in the study period (8 weeks) in 2001. The TOP rates decreased from 16.1% to 13.6% (P = 0.20). The TOP rates for teenagers decreased from 22.3% to 16.3% (P = 0.006), but were higher than those for older women (15.2% in 1999 and 13.2% in 2001, P = 0.006 and 0.028 respectively). TOP rates for teenagers 13- 16 years decreased from 28.0% to 23.0% (P = 0.44), and rates for older teenagers declined from 21.0% to 14.9% (P = 0.008). In 2001, 16.2% of women aged 35 and above underwent TOP, compared with 12.7% of women aged 20 - 34 years (P =0.014).Conclusion. Use of TOP services was highest in women at the extremes of reproductive age. There was a significant decline in TOP rates among older teenagers between 1999 and 2001. These data, from a comprehensive urban reproductive health service, provide a benchmark for comparison elsewhere and in the future

Student attitude towards Mathematics and performance: Does the teacher attitude matter?

The indispensable role of attitude in the learning of Mathematics has garnered the attention of educational researchers and Mathematics educators for a very long time. Hence, literature is replete with empirical evidence on the relationship between teacher attitude and student academic performance in Mathematics. The study was fashioned to extend the discussion to the influence of teacher attitude on student attitude. The samples for the study were one hundred students and four Mathematics teachers making a total of one hundred and four respondents. The students were randomly selected while the teachers were purposively sampled. Two sets of questionnaires were used to gather data from the respondents after they had been validated and their reliability established. Students’ end of term examination scores were used as a measure of students’ academic achievements. The study unveiled a significant relationship between teacher attitude and student attitude toward Mathematics. It was realised that teachers’ positive attitude radiated confidence in students hence made them develop positive attitude towards the learning of Mathematics. The results of the study were also consistent with existing findings on the relationship between teacher attitude and students’ performance in Mathematics. Implications of the findings are discussed and recommendations             have been proffered for practice.  Key words: Mathematics, teacher attitude, student attitude, student performance, influence and relationshi

Emergency supply of prescription-only medicines to patients by community pharmacists: a mixed methods evaluation incorporating patient, pharmacist and GP perspectives

Objective To evaluate and inform emergency supply of prescription-only medicines by community pharmacists (CPs), including how the service could form an integral component of established healthcare provision to maximise adherence. Design Mixed methods. 4 phases: prospective audit of emergency supply requests for prescribed medicines (October–November 2012 and April 2013); interviews with CPs (February–April 2013); follow-up interviews with patients (April–May 2013); interactive feedback sessions with general practice teams (October–November 2013). Setting 22 community pharmacies and 6 general practices in Northwest England. Participants 27 CPs with experience of dealing with requests for emergency supplies; 25 patients who received an emergency supply of a prescribed medicine; 58 staff at 6 general practices. Results Clinical audit in 22 pharmacies over two 4-week periods reported that 526 medicines were requested by 450 patients. Requests peaked over a bank holiday and around weekends. A significant number of supplies were made during practice opening hours. Most requests were for older patients and for medicines used in long-term conditions. Difficulty in renewing repeat medication (forgetting to order, or prescription delays) was the major reason for requests. The majority of medicines were ‘loaned’ in advance of a National Health Service (NHS) prescription. Interviews with CPs and patients indicated that continuous supply had a positive impact on medicines adherence, removing the need to access urgent care. General practice staff were surprised and concerned by the extent of emergency supply episodes. Conclusions CPs regularly provide emergency supplies to patients who run out of their repeat medication, including during practice opening hours. This may aid adherence. There is currently no feedback loop, however, to general practice. Patient care and interprofessional communication may be better served by the introduction of a formally structured and funded NHS emergency supply service from community pharmacies, with ongoing optimisation of repeat prescribing

Yam pests in the Ashanti and Brong Ahafo regions of Ghana: A study of farmers\' indigenous technical knowledge and control practices

In Ghana, yam is a very important indigenous subsistence and cash crop that is now the most popular nontraditional export food crop, despite years of scientific neglect. There is a general paucity of technical information on yam production and marketing constraints, but especially so for pests and their management. To understand and document farmers\' needs as a basis for developing technologies to meet their requirements, this study surveyed yam farmers\' indigenous technical knowledge about pests on their crops and their pest management practices over the years in two districts in Brong Ahafo Region and one in Ashanti Region. Pre-tested questionnaire were administered to 30 randomly selected farmers in five villages in each district. The results showed that farmers\' knowledge about pests and the pest spectra were similar for the three districts. Farmers knew about insect pests on their yams, but were neither able to draw interrelationships between pest populations and damage nor the cultural practices that they follow or the ecological state of their farms. Termites (Amitermes spp., Macrotemes spp., and Microtermes spp.) were considered more important pests than millipedes (Peridontoyge spp.), tuber beetles (Heterolygus meles and Prionorcytes rufopiceus), mealybugs (Pseudococcus brevipes, Planococcus dioscorea and Ferrisia virgata), and scale insects (Aspidiotus destructor and Aspidiella hartii) in that order. Out of 12 white yam varieties cultivated in the area, “Pona” was identified to be most susceptible to pest attack and “Dentepruka” least susceptible. Anthropological factors such as farmer's origin or residency status, level of education, age, marital status, family size, and the land tenure system were also found to play key roles in the technologies adopted in cultivating yams. The implications of the findings, particularly in identifying appropriate experimental variables for technology generation and transfer to improve yam resource productivity, are discussed

The Contexts for Learning and Instruction Influencing Ghanaian JSS2 Students\' Dismal Performance in TIMSS-2003

In 2003, Ghana for the first time participated in TIMSS in order to find out how the performance of her eighth graders (JSS2) in science and mathematics compared with those of other countries. This involved a total of 5,114 JSS2 students in 150 schools sampled across the country. The Ghanaian JSS2 students' overall attainment in the TIMSS-2003 in mathematics and science was poor. This dismal performance placed Ghana at the 45th position on the overall mathematics achievement results table in the two subjects. This paper discusses some of the contexts for learning and instruction within and outside the school that had influenced such an abysmal performance. The analysis indicated that science and mathematics, which are key curriculum areas that are fundamental to the development of technologically literate societies, are subjects that are highly valued by Ghanaian students. The analysis also revealed that higher students' achievement in science and mathematics was associated with higher levels of parents' education. Also many of the students who had high expectations for university education were from parent who had university education. The analysis further revealed that homes where students had their own study table, had access to books and had the opportunity to speak English positively affected achievement in science and mathematics. Finally, it revealed that teachers emphasized methods that focus on knowledge and understanding of basic facts and principles and used instructional strategies that gave students little opportunity to design experiments (or investigations) in science and decide procedures for solving problems in mathematics. African Journal of Educational Studies in Mathematics and Sciences Vol. 4 2006: pp.15-3